


Freedom

by RMarie124



Series: Fictober 2019 [14]
Category: Star Trek: Voyager
Genre: Eventual Smut, F/M, Fluff, Party at Sandrine's, We love a good endgame fix-it, post Endgame
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-15
Updated: 2019-10-15
Packaged: 2020-12-16 17:23:29
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,875
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21039938
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RMarie124/pseuds/RMarie124
Summary: After the verdict is read at the end of the debriefing sessions, Kathryn decides to throw one last party on Voyager for her crew. It turns into a night of new beginnings, and a promise for a better future for everyone.Fictober Day #14: "I can't come back."





	Freedom

Every crew member of the famed USS Voyager sat in a courtroom in Starfleet Headquarters. No one was moving, no one dared make any noise, and everyone was holding their breath. The Senior Staff all sat together in one row, faces neutral, but ready to defend anything malicious that the Admirals in charge of their debriefing could possibly say. They had reached the end of their debriefings one week ago, and had been called back that day to hear the decisions that had been made concerning multiple things. First on the docket: the fate of the former Maquis crew.

“Through the lengthy debriefing process, it quite clear that Captain Kathryn Janeway did in fact succeed in the capture of the Maquis crew that she was sent to obtain.” Admiral Necheyev started. “After the destruction of the Caretaker’s Array, she was faced with a decision, and decided to integrate that crew into her own. This decision was slightly unorthodox, however necessary given the circumstances she found herself under. We have studied at length Captain Janeway’s reports on the former Maquis crew over the span of the seven year journey back to Earth, and it is our opinion that due to exemplary performances from the former Maquis, save Seska, that they should all be pardoned and allowed to continue to work for Starfleet if they so desire.”

The whole crew let out a collective breath of relief. Smiles broke out across the whole crew. Everyone was murmuring excitedly and a few tears were even shed. Kathryn looked at Chakotay and smiled brilliantly at him. He returned the smile and her heart soared. 

Next was the individual offers to the crew. Everyone was split into groups and told to meet with a particular Admiral to receive their promotions and/or offers. 

Chakotay approached Admiral Necheyev and stood at attention. 

“At ease, Commander.” Necheyev insisted. 

Chakotay relaxed and said, “On behalf of my Maquis crew, thank you for the pardon, sir.”

“It didn’t seem right to any of us that you should be arrested.” The Admiral confessed. “Seven years of solitude like that is punishment enough. You all more than made up for it by your outstanding services to the crew. Now, as for your offer. Starfleet would love to have you stay. We would promote you to Captain and give you your own ship. Possibly Voyager, depending on what the official decision is on her fate. You would be allowed to choose your own Senior Staff, meaning anyone from this crew who decides to stay in Starfleet.”

Chakotay was stunned. He was not expecting an offer as gracious as the one he had been presented with. He had expected to be offered a position on another starship, sure, but to potentially command Voyager? That was not something he would have ever dreamed of. Although the offer was amazing, Chakotay did not feel as though it was something he truly wanted to do.

“Sir, I appreciate the offer more than you could imagine, especially if the ship under my command were to be Voyager.” He took a breath, “However, I feel as though I have had more than my fill of space travel. I can’t come back. Not right away, at least. In fact, I might not ever be able to come back to it in that capacity.” 

To Chakotay’s continued surprise, Necheyev smiled. “We had a feeling that might be the response of many of the crew. We have secondary offers for all of you. We are also prepared to offer you a full time teaching position at Starfleet Academy. I read your file, and it said your main interest was Anthropology. We would love to have you teach an Anthropology class or two, perhaps even one on cultures that you encountered in the Delta Quadrant. Information that’s non-classified only, of course.” The two men shared a knowing smile. “You may start whenever you wish, as long as it’s within the next two years. We want everyone to feel as though they will get an adequate leave period.”

Without hesitation, Chakotay accepted the deal. “Thank you, sir. When do you need my decision of when I want to start teaching?”

“By the end of this month, please.” 

“Aye, sir.” Chakotay moved to leave before adding, “Thank you again, sir. For everything.”

“It is my pleasure, believe me, Commander.” Necheyev stood and shook Chakotay’s hand.

Chakotay left Necheyev’s office in awe. He met up with Kathryn in the hallway, her expression matching the one he suspected he was also wearing. 

“Well?” Kathryn asked excitedly, “What did they offer you?”

“They originally offered me a command position, potentially Voyager herself.” Chakotay started. “But I turned it down. I don’t feel like I’m ready to go back into space yet, or at all, for that matter. They then offered me a teaching position at the Academy, and I accepted it. I’ll be teaching Anthropology courses when I decide I’m ready to come back and work.”

“Chakotay, that’s wonderful!” Kathryn hugged him tightly. “I’m so happy for you. You’re going to be an amazing professor. Although,” She pulled away and laughed lightly, “You also would’ve done a damn fine job as captain of our ship.”

“Our ship?” He raised an eyebrow and grinned. 

“Yes, our ship, you idiot.” She slapped his chest playfully. “How could it not be after seven years?”

“Fair point,” He joined her in laughing again. “How about you? What did they offer you? I hope it was nothing less than a position as an Admiral.”

Kathryn rolled her eyes, but smiled nonetheless. “Yes, they did in fact offer me a promotion to Admiral. I skipped over Vice-Admiral, something that I’m sure many people will have very strong opinions about. I accepted, of course.” 

“You’re going to make a wonderful Admiral, Kathryn. Congratulations!” 

“I think we should throw a party for our crew, don’t you?” She looked over at the small groups that had started congregating, all chatting excitedly about their new jobs. “One last hurrah until I inevitably miss them dearly and call for another party? I can pull some strings and even get it aboard on Voyager, on the Holodeck like old times.” 

“That sounds like an excellent idea.” Chakotay grinned. “Might I suggest Sandrine’s? It’ll be like a full circle moment.” 

“I like the way you think, Chakotay. I’ll comm you with the details once I get them figured out. I expect to see you there, no uniforms. Only casual dress.” 

“I look forward to it.” 

Kathryn managed to pull everything together in under two hours. She sent out the comm to all of her old crew, encouraging them to come, but letting them know that if they had other plans it was quite alright. She’d probably be planning another get together in a year or so, anyway. 

To her delight, that night when she walked onto the Holodeck, all of her former crew was there. It gave her the same feeling as when she had stood nervously outside the Cargo Bay to see if any of her crew had decided to leave, and found that no-one was there. That moment seemed so far away now, and she was immensely proud of what they had all accomplished. 

“Captain on the Holodeck!” Tom appeared at her side, a glass of wine in his hand. “Welcome! The whole gang is here, and we’re all so glad to see you.”

Kathryn took the wine and pulled her helmsman in for a sideways hug. “It’s wonderful to see you too, Mr. Paris. But please, we’re home now. There’s no rank tonight. Call me Kathryn.”

Tom grinned. “In that case, Kathryn, would you care to say a few words?”

“I’d love to.” She couldn’t help but grin in return. It was evident that Tom was a few drinks in, and she found it endearing that he was so eager. 

The crowd had quieted down by then, and she turned to face them all. She was overcome with emotion in that moment, and tears pushed their way up and pooled in her eyes. For once, she didn’t try and push them down. She looked at all of them, her beloved crew, and smiled brilliantly.

“Well, everyone, we did it. We made it home despite everything that was against us. We made it through the Borg, Species 8472, numerous temporal anomalies, and Neelix’s cooking, bless his heart.” Everyone laughed at that. “I know he’d be here if he could, and he’d be bustling about, happily serving us his latest creation. In any case, I just want you all to know that I am so proud of each and every one of you. And, I am so damn grateful for each and every one of you as well. Everyone in here contributed immensely to getting us home, and for that I will be forever indebted to you.” She stopped briefly to wipe away a few tears that had fallen. “I love you all dearly, and will miss our time together. Please, do not hesitate to reach out to me if you need anything. It has been an honor serving as your Captain for the last seven years. I cannot wait to see all of you continue to grow and flourish.” Kathryn raised her glass. “To making it home.”

Her toast echoed back to her and she saw quite a few people brushing tears away as well. The music started again, and everyone resumed chatting, moving about and even dancing. Kathryn made her way through the crowd, stopping briefly to speak to everyone. She eventually found Chakotay in the sea of people, and moved towards him.

“Are you enjoying the party?” She asked him, taking a sip of her wine.

“It’s absolutely wonderful.” He smiled. “Your toast was incredible. I don’t think there was a dry eye in the house.” 

“I was only speaking the truth.” Kathryn looked around. “This really was a spectacular crew.”

“They truly were.” Chakotay nodded.

“You know, Chakotay, I’ve been wanting to talk to you for some time.” She looked at him.

“We talk quite frequently, Kathryn.” He teased.

She rolled her eyes at him. “Yes, I’m aware. I wanted to talk to you about something in particular, though.” She took another sip of wine to give her time to gather her thoughts. “I’ve been thinking about… parameters.” 

Chakotay’s eyebrow raised, and she saw him start to close off. “Kathryn…”

“Hear me out, Chakotay. Please.” 

He nodded at her to continue. She took a deep breath.

“The parameters were stupid, in hindsight. I thought them necessary at the time to protect the balance that we had at the time. I realize now that in a way, they only served to facilitate the decline of our relationship towards the end of our travels home. It is something that I regretted for years, but I couldn’t bring myself to change it. It became some sort of punishment for me.” 

He moved to speak, but she held a hand up to stop him. 

“I am sorry for the pain I’ve caused you as a result of my determination to uphold that aspect of Starfleet Protocol, over every other Protocol that I bent.” She gingerly placed a hand on his chest. “I want to throw those protocols out the airlock, if you’re still willing. I want to explore what could have—no—what should have happened on New Earth and past that.”

She held her breath while he weighed her words. She saw the process of comprehension as it moved across his face, ending in the beautiful, dimpled smile that she loved with every fibre of her being. 

“I’ll be the one to open the airlock. Right now, if you’ll let me.” His eyes searched hers. 

It was her turn to smile. “I’d love it if you would.”

He stepped closer to her. “Kathryn. I intend to kiss you now. Right here, in front of everyone. If you don’t want me to, I will wait until later tonight after everyone clears out.”

“Aren’t you curious to who’s going to win the betting pool?” Her hand came to rest on his cheek, and he nodded. “Me too. Let’s give them a show.”

He laughed and leaned down to kiss her, pulling her close against him. Cheers rose up behind them, but Kathryn and Chakotay barely registered them, both too lost in each other. When they finally pulled away, Chakotay rested his forehead briefly against hers before turning around to look at everyone. 

“So, Tom, who won the betting pool?” He called out.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about Chakotay,” Tom came to the front of the crowd. “There was no betting—”

“Oh bullshit, Paris.” Kathryn laughed. “Chakotay and I have known about the betting pool for years now. Who won?” 

Tom blushed but moved to the computer to pull up the old betting pool. He looked, then looked again in disbelief. 

“I don’t believe this. It was Tuvok that won!” 

Kathryn and Chakotay looked at each other and burst out laughing. “Are you serious?” Kathryn asked between laughs. “It was Tuvok?”

“Indeed, Kathryn.” Tuvok came to stand beside her, an eyebrow raised in a satisfied manner. “I surmised that Starfleet Protocol would play a large part in both of you keeping your distance, despite the mutual desire not to adhere to the rules.”

“You continue to surprise me, Tuvok.” She shook her head, smiling nonetheless. 

The party continued well into the night, everyone happy to finally see their Command Team happily together. Kathryn and Chakotay were met with many congratulations from all of the crew, and even a few teasing ‘it’s about time’s.’ 

Kathryn ended up taking Chakotay back to her apartment after the party had finished. They had both been trying to keep their composure all night, but it had become quite difficult as the night wore on. As soon as the door to her apartment was closed and locked, Kathryn found herself pushed up against it, Chakotay’s lips finding hers in a heated kiss. He pushed her jacket off her shoulders, and she mirrored his actions. One of her legs wrapped around his hips, pulling him closer to her. One of his hands pushed her dress up to bunch around her hips, and he started drawing teasing patterns on her inner thigh. She gasped at the sensation.

His lips moved to her neck and she let her head move to the side to give him better access. Kathryn couldn’t help but think this all felt so right, like they were always meant to come home together at the end of the night and fall into bed together.

Or perhaps not even make it to the bedroom, with the way things were going. 

Chakotay’s hand had moved higher up now, ghosting occasionally across her center. She had started moving her hips in attempts to gain more friction, but Chakotay was being such a damn tease that she couldn’t get more than he was giving. But he was so good at what he was doing that she could feel herself getting wetter by the second. Kathryn reached between them and started pulling at his belt and pants, trying to push them down as efficiently as possible. He pulled away momentarily to help her, but then immediately returned to teasing her. Kathryn felt desperate for more.

She pulled him up for a heated kiss. “Please.” She whispered. “Please don’t make me wait any longer.” 

Chakotay slipped his hand into her underwear, immediately tracing her folds and moving up to draw circles on her clit. She moaned loudly and gripped tightly at his shoulders. To her chagrin, his hand pulled away, but he moved to push down her underwear and pull her leg back around him. He lined himself up with her entrance and slowly pushed in, giving her time to adjust with every shallow thrust. By the time he was fully inside her, Kathryn was close. She knew it wouldn’t take much for her to come, but she knew that it was going to be one of the best orgasms she’d ever had.

She started moving her hips, encouraging him to start moving as well. He started with a slow pace, but Kathryn growled at him to go faster and he set a relentless pace. She was crying out with nearly every thrust, her body overwhelmed with wonderful sensations. Her hands were gripping tightly at Chakotay’s shoulders, and one of his hands hand moved back to her clit, moving in circles in time with his thrusts.

That sent Kathryn over the edge with a sharp cry of his name, her muscles tensing up with the force of her climax. She felt wave after wave hit her, each somehow stronger than the last. Chakotay followed soon after, the force of Kathryn’s climax pushing him over the edge into his own.

Slowly, they came down from their highs. Chakotay was resting his head on her shoulder, and they were both breathing heavily. 

“Oh my god.” She breathed. 

“Me too.” He said, voice muffled against the skin of her neck. 

She pulled his him up and into a soft kiss. “I think it’s time for bed, don’t you?” She smiled suggestively.

He laughed. “I agree. Lead the way.”

**Author's Note:**

> I loved writing the debriefing stuff so much that I might actually try and throw in a debriefing session in here as one of the upcoming fics for this series. I can't decide if I want to do a serious and angsty New Earth debrief, an awkward Threshold debrief, or maybe some other iconic moment debrief. I'll have to think about it. 
> 
> I enjoyed writing this one so much, I think it's one of my favorites. I'm still not the best at writing smut yet, but I'm hoping that this was okay.
> 
> Hope you guys enjoyed this one!


End file.
